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Rule 4.2 Telephone call after arrest.

RULE 4. ARREST AND INITIAL APPEARANCE

← Previous Rule 4.1: Arrest without a warrant. Next → Rule 4.3: Procedure upon arrest.

Rule Text

Any person under arrest shall be afforded an opportunity to make a telephone call to any person that he or she may choose, without undue delay.

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

When someone gets arrested in Alabama, the police must let them make a phone call soon after the arrest. The person can choose who to call, whether that's a family member, friend, or lawyer. The police cannot make the person wait a long time before giving them this chance.

This rule protects a basic right for anyone who is arrested. It means the person can quickly let someone know what happened to them and start arranging for help, like finding a lawyer or getting bail money together. The police need to give this phone call opportunity without unnecessary delays, though the rule doesn't specify an exact time limit.

Committee Notes

Committee Comment

The rule gives official sanction to an existing practice in most areas of the state. Fundamental fairness dictates that a person who has been taken into custody be allowed to communicate to another that he is being held by the police and charged with a crime. The rule is similar to Rule 242, Unif.R.Crim.P., as well as the ALI, Model Code of Pre-Arraignment Procedure § 140.7 (Temp.Draft. # 6, 1974).

← Previous Rule 4.1: Arrest without a warrant. Next → Rule 4.3: Procedure upon arrest.

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Last updated: September 2026

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